Board approves Greenville Police request to place license-plate reader on county property; sheriff access specified

The Meriwether County Board of Commissioners approved a five-year intergovernmental agreement allowing the City of Greenville Police Department to install a Flock Safety license-plate reader (LPR) on county-owned land near Roosevelt Highway directly across from Greenville High School.

Staff said the camera would be owned and paid for by the city, and the proposed agreement includes language that the county bears no financial responsibility or liability for the device. The sheriff's office was included in the agreement so county deputies can request access to the camera data for investigations.

Commissioners asked staff whether the camera location falls inside Greenville's city limits and whether the installation would duplicate existing county or sheriff cameras. Staff said the city extended its limits to include the high-school parcel on one side of the road and that other municipalities in the county have pursued similar agreements to speed installations while they await state approvals for cameras along state highways.

A commissioner described how the Flock system is used in investigations: the system captures images of passing vehicles and can be searched for a make, color or tag during a specific time window; alerts are generated only when a plate matches a law-enforcement query such as a BOLO or an expired tag. Staff emphasized that the system does not automatically issue citations; it provides alerts to officers, who must then effect a stop and issue any citation.

A motion to approve the agreement, with the legal review and signature by the chair or vice chair, passed. The transcript records the motion and a second; the vote was recorded as "all in favor," but the meeting minutes did not list a roll-call tally in the transcript excerpt.